Modified Power Wheels Forum

UselessPickles

Mamba Monster is probably overkill. Mamba Max Pro is very good.

UselessPickles

<r>The ESC needs to be calibrated for the exact endpoints and mid-point of the throttle signal from the receiver, so you might run into trouble trying to do this. If the throttle signals are close enough between the two, then it could work. However, you'll probably find that you'll always have to po...

UselessPickles

<r><QUOTE author="GI_J0E"><s>[quote="GI_J0E"]</s> The reverse switch v2 is really similar to what I'm doing. A digital input to the arduino to control reverse, except I'm tying the pin to high via a resistor and use the reverse switch to pull the pin low. Good luck!<e>[/quote]</e></QUOTE> I would ha...

UselessPickles

<r>You can't directly use the 12V battery to power the receiver (because it probably has an operating range of around 4.5-6.5V). Look for what's known as a "BEC", or "battery eliminator circuit", in the R/C world. They are basically heavy duty voltage regulators that allow you to step down the volta...

UselessPickles

<r>You've got me thinking about using bluetooth for something now. Looks like those bluetooth modules provide a UART interface so you can simply communicate with it from a microcontroller (or Arduino board) using the serial communications abilities of the chip. I still have no idea how involved it i...

UselessPickles

<r>Still tweaking things a bit... It turns out that setting up the pedal as a brake/reverse wasn't such a good idea. That pedal is positioned in a place that makes it nearly impossible for a kid to not step on it when mounting, dismounting, or even just sitting on the vehicle. I've seen e...

UselessPickles

<r>This sounds like a fun project. I can't help you with the bluetooth part and interfacing with a phone, but I might be able to give you some ideas for the microcontroller and ESC side of things. Have you considered modifying the pedal to actuate a potentiometer so you can get proportio...

UselessPickles

<r><QUOTE author="sherlock640"><s>[quote="sherlock640"]</s>Any Thoughts on this ESC? <URL url="http://www.rcplanet.com/DuraTrax_Sprint_Evader_p/dtxm1205.htm"><s>[url=http://www.rcplanet.com/DuraTrax_Sprint_Evader_p/dtxm1205.htm]</s>DuraTrax Sprint 2<e>[/url]</e></URL><e>[/quote]</e></QUOT...

UselessPickles

<r>New feature added! Radio-controlled throttle override, so I can remotely hit the brakes for my kids to avoid collisions. <IMG src="http://www.uselesspickles.com/files/pictures/power_wheels/proportional/radio_receiver_for_throttle_override.jpg"><s>[img]</s><URL url="http://w...

UselessPickles

<r>My kids are still a bit to young to be trusted to drive a power wheels around without crashing into things (like my car in the driveway). Up until now, I had to follow closely and be prepared to jump in and stop a collision from happening. Apparently, a grown man running toward you, urgently sayi...

UselessPickles

<r><QUOTE author="sherlock640"><s>[quote="sherlock640"]</s> Circuit board controller - Need diagram for understanding controller <e>[/quote]</e></QUOTE> Removing all the original wires and circuit boards, then wiring the motors up to an ESC will be the easiest way to get throttle control. ...

UselessPickles

<r>Throttle control is easy. Just tear out all the original wiring and hook everything up through an ESC. the Mamba Max Pro is a very nice ESC and quite programmable. I suggest turning "punch control" up to the max. Here's some details on the ESC/battery/motors wiring: <URL url="https://m...

UselessPickles

<r><QUOTE author="sirironduke"><s>[quote="sirironduke"]</s>why not use a dimmer switch set up? <e>[/quote]</e></QUOTE> <LIST><s>[list]</s> <LI><s>[*]</s>If it worked, a dimmer switch position would directly translate to power to the motors. To prevent stripping the gears and giving kids whiplash, I ...

UselessPickles

<t>I'm pretty sure that you'd want an ESC designed for cars rather than planes. I think the airplane ESCs assume that you will have constant airflow over them to help keep them cool. They also don't have brakes or reverse. I don't know how many amps the motors end up drawing on these Pow...

UselessPickles

<r><QUOTE author="kickingrass"><s>[quote="kickingrass"]</s>Thats awesome!! all projects should be so well documented.<e>[/quote]</e></QUOTE> Thanks <E>:)</E> <QUOTE author="kickingrass"><s>[quote="kickingrass"]</s>I dont comprehend the coding part, so are the controllers available pre-programme...

UselessPickles

Doubling the gearing for (theoretically) double the speed would also double the load on the motors, which would increase amp draw (exactly double? I don't know for sure). I predict doing so would lead to a much shortened life of either the motors or the ESC.

UselessPickles

<r>The "fly-by-wire" steering is an awesome idea for a combination of rider and radio control. You could use the same steering servo setup as this guy: <URL url="https://modifiedpowerwheels.com/viewtopic.php?f=26&t=715"><LINK_TEXT text="viewtopic.php?f=26&t=715">https://modifiedpowerwheels.c...

UselessPickles

<t>Turn off the voltage cut-off. That's really intended for lipo batteries because they will over-discharge before they "feel" like they're running low. The lead acid battery will drop below 12v under load and will trigger the low voltage cut-off. If you really want to use the low-voltage cut-off, y...

UselessPickles

<r><QUOTE author="Woodson"><s>[quote="Woodson"]</s> <s>[b]</s>Phase two ability to maneuver through sugary beach sand? Plexiglass skim plate on servo and plexi glass cube over motors with heat sink fan? <e>[/b]</e><e>[/quote]</e></QUOTE> Some type of skid plate (probably aluminum) would ...

UselessPickles

<r>I just hooked up a 2-cell and 3-cell lipo in series for a total of 18.5v and measured a top speed of 7.7mph. It was also very fun to do controlled power slides, thanks to the proportional throttle control <E>:)</E> I really need to get one of the Power Wheels made for 2 kids with a higher weight ...

UselessPickles

<r>I got a new battery. Here it is compared to a Power Wheels battery: <IMG src="http://www.uselesspickles.com/files/pictures/power_wheels/proportional/battery1.jpg"><s>[img]</s><URL url="http://www.uselesspickles.com/files/pictures/power_wheels/proportional/battery1.jpg"><LINK_TEXT text=...

UselessPickles

<r>Try some <URL url="http://www.loctite.com/cps/rde/xchg/SID-3884A870-F188FAFE/henkel_com/hs.xsl/fullproductlist-electronics.htm?iname=Loctite+Blue+Threadlocker+Stick+-+Medium+Strength+%28Automotive+Aftermarket+Only%29&countryCode=us&BU=industrial&parentredDotUID=productfinder&redDo...

UselessPickles

<r>Here's my kid's first ride on the newly modified Power Wheels. <VIDEO content0="http" content1="www." content2="tube" content3="com" content4="OvjKIDuE7bI"><s>[video]</s>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OvjKIDuE7bI<e>[/video]</e></VIDEO> He's only 2 years old (recommended minimum age is 3), s...

UselessPickles

<r>Maybe you should edit the first post in this thread to add the finalized parts checklist based on what you ended up using (and pictures, of course), since you intended this thread to be a definitive list of what you need to convert a Power Wheels to R/C. It would be nice to not have to read throu...

UselessPickles

Pictures, or it didn't happen :)

Congrats on getting it working. I would highly suggest setting up maximum "punch control" and a low amount of braking power (maybe 50%?) to keep the gearboxes happy.

UselessPickles

<r>Time for final assembly. I finished up the throttle assembly and pedal assembly by adding connectors to the wires and adding some abrasion protection to key areas of the wiring: <IMG src="http://www.uselesspickles.com/files/pictures/power_wheels/proportional/pedal_complete.jpg"><s>[img...

UselessPickles

<r>Now for some details on the final pieces of the puzzle... I spent many hours doing stuff that doesn't make for exciting photos: writing code for the microcontroller so that it will read the positions of the throttle and pedal, then output the appropriate corresponding signal to the ESC...

UselessPickles

<r>Much thanks to my friend, I have my custom electronics working again. There was much soldering, starting over, and probably tons of cursing before a config setting for the microcontroller program was found to be wrong and causing the new microcontroller to not work. The new circuit board is now s...

UselessPickles

<r><QUOTE author="Woodson"><s>[quote="Woodson"]</s> I have the steering servo set up and have run the motors in series for connecting the ESC. <e>[/quote]</e></QUOTE> You probably want to hook the motors up in parallel. In series, they each only get half the voltage, so you'll get about half the spe...

UselessPickles

<r>No more testing. I've been busy working on programming the microcontroller. It's pretty much complete torture. I got an initial version of the software working properly the other day (tested on a simulator), and we put everything together on a circuit board today. Everything tested ou...

UselessPickles

<r>Battery hold-down is done <E>:)</E> Here's the materials: <IMG src="http://www.uselesspickles.com/files/pictures/power_wheels/proportional/battery_hold1.jpg"><s>[img]</s><URL url="http://www.uselesspickles.com/files/pictures/power_wheels/proportional/battery_hold1.jpg"><LINK_TEXT ...

UselessPickles

<r>Progressing slowly... I started getting wiring prepared to connect everything to the custom electronics (which I should get started on this weekend). I have 3 things that need to connect to it: throttle, pedal and the ESC. Since an ESC has a servo wire/connector for plugging into a rec...

UselessPickles

<t>I did a bit of testing this evening. First, here's some simple speed results. This was done unloaded (kid was in bed already, and I'm too heavy; weight limit is 65lbs) on a flat, smooth asphalt driveway. Original motors, gearing and wheels. Traxxas VXL-3s ESC (training mode) + 2-cell l...

UselessPickles

<r>Good point there haus... don't everyone go rushing out and doing this just yet assuming everything will be perfect just because I said I'm doing it. I haven't done any extensive testing yet. I have done some quick indoor tests. It had no problem hauling me around (135lbs). I definitely...

UselessPickles

<r>I have some more details about my ESC setup posted now: <URL url="https://modifiedpowerwheels.com/viewtopic.php?p=16500#p16500"><LINK_TEXT text="viewtopic.php?p=16500#p16500">https://modifiedpowerwheels.com/viewtopic.php?p=16500#p16500</LINK_TEXT></URL> I have some additional details p...

UselessPickles

<r>Now for something that many people might be interested in for creating a radio controlled Power Wheels: wiring up a speed controller that can controlled by the throttle channel of a radio system. I'm using a Traxxas VXL-3s ESC because it's just an extra I have sitting around. It can ha...

UselessPickles

<r>To finish removing the original wiring, the rear wheels need to come off. Start by popping the little caps off. <IMG src="http://www.uselesspickles.com/files/pictures/power_wheels/proportional/harness_removal18.jpg"><s>[img]</s><URL url="http://www.uselesspickles.com/files/pictures/pow...

UselessPickles

<r>Next was to disconnect the forward/reverse switch. I'm still trying to think of ideas for what the switch could do now that I won't need it to toggle between forward and reverse. Two screws hold the switches mounting plate, and it lifts out with a bit of finessing. <IMG src=...

UselessPickles

<r>Now for some details on how I rewired the Power Wheels to use a speed controller from an R/C car. I'll break this into a couple posts because there's lots of pics (there was a fingerprint on my lens for many of these pics - sorry for the blur!). The throttle grip and pedal were alread...

UselessPickles

<r>You might be interested in my most recent progress on my project: <URL url="https://modifiedpowerwheels.com/viewtopic.php?p=16033#p16033"><LINK_TEXT text="viewtopic.php?p=16033#p16033">https://modifiedpowerwheels.com/viewtopic.php?p=16033#p16033</LINK_TEXT></URL> I now have the motors ...

UselessPickles

<r>Quick update with a video... I got all the wiring removed from the Power Wheels and re-wired the motors to plug into the ESC. I borrowed a radio system from one of my R/C cars to give it a quick test. If I was going for an R/C Power Wheels, all I'd have left to do is rig up a steering ...

UselessPickles

<r>Got the throttle done! First, here's what it looked like before I got started: <IMG src="http://www.uselesspickles.com/files/pictures/power_wheels/proportional/throttle_original.jpg"><s>[img]</s><URL url="http://www.uselesspickles.com/files/pictures/power_wheels/proportional...

UselessPickles

<r>I'm not sure what the removal of the pedals has to do with it. You wouldn't use the pedals if you used an R/C ESC either. The ESC plugs into the receiver and the motors plug into the ESC (you would hook the 2 motors up in parallel). A possible option would be the Mamba Max Pro: <URL u...

UselessPickles

<r>The first step was to work on the physical modifications to the throttle and pedal so that they actuate slide potentiometers. After some searching and measuring, I settled on this potentiometer (picture of the website is not an exact match; the one in the pic is longer): <URL url="http://www.mous...

UselessPickles

<r>A couple posts were added between the time I tried to post here and when my post got approved by a moderator, so don't forget to consider using an ESC for RC cars: <URL url="https://modifiedpowerwheels.com/viewtopic.php?p=15461#p15461"><LINK_TEXT text="viewtopic.php?p=15461#p15461">https://modifi...

UselessPickles

<r><QUOTE author="dasilva100"><s>[quote="dasilva100"]</s>My plan is starting an Rc mod using a 24v scooter controller and making a mechanical assemble to attach a servo to a twist throotle to control the speed.<e>[/quote]</e></QUOTE> Why not just use an electronic speed controller (ESC) for an RC ca...

UselessPickles

<r>My son received one of the Kawasaki ATV Power Wheels for his birthday and I was quite disappointed with the following: <LIST><s>[list]</s> <LI><s>[*]</s>What would normally be a brake pedal on motorcycles is actually the primary throttle of this Power Wheels.</LI> <LI><s>[*]</s>The throttle on th...

Search found 47 matches